"He who knows how to flatter also knows how to slander."Napoleon Bonaparte

"Freedom of Speech does not protect you from the consequences of saying stupid shit."Jim C. Hines

We are all endowed with the right to express our opinions in a fair and honest way. The slippery slope begins when the line between facts and opinions is blurred by ruthless, amoral individuals to create self-serving propaganda in their quest for authority, power, fame and, of course, MONEY!

Such paddles were used to even the ends of the sheaths of rice that were bound together after harvesting and stored in elaborate rice barns (jineng). Most of these were functional and undecorated. Examples like this, however, were presumably carved for ritual purposes such as the first harvest of the year.

The image is that of Dewi Sri, the beloved goddess of rice, who according to Balinese myth sacrificed her own body to bless humans with the most important of crops — rice, the Balinese staff of life.

Prior to the opening of the 2013 Parcours des Mondes
tribal art fair in Paris, it appeared a major controversy was brewing behind
the scenes. Word was quickly spreading that a wood sculpture from Borneo
Island offered by an important gallery as their key piece during the fair, was
a forgery.

The gallery had advertised the sculpture in the latest
issue of Tribal Magazine and I have to admit I was initially puzzled by the
object. Frankly, the single image selected for the ad, a partial front
view, was difficult to read and emphasized what turned out to be the figure’s
oddest feature. However, I saw nothing obvious that made me suspect there
was a problem with the sculpture.